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EVENT BUDGETING FORM
Preparing a realistic budget is a critical part of the planning process for a successful event.
To budget accurately, you will need to calculate both the likely costs and the likely
income. Once you worked out your projected costs and income, you can calculate your
net income and your break-even point. You are then in a position to decide whether or
not your event is viable.
CALCULATING YOUR INCOME
Calculating the income you are likely to raise form an event is not easy. It is, however,
essential in assessing whether an event is viable. Clearly, there is no point in staging an
event which either costs more than it raises or makes a level of profit which does not
justify the time involved in organising it.
Break down your income by source and calculate an income forecast for each source.
Sources of income will, of course, vary depending on the nature of your event but may
include the following:
Ticket sales
Sale of advertising space
(in programme or at event)
Sale of promotional items,
goods, etc.
Donations
Raffle, tombola, etc
Sale of refreshments
Entry fees
Sale of publications
Sponsorship contributions
Other (specify)
Stall holders’ fees, e.g. car boot sale tables, artists fees,
etc.
By far the best way of accurately calculating income is to base your figures on past
experience. If you have organised a similar event before, talk to those who were
involved to establish how much was made from each source of income.
If you have no experience of events of this kind, try to talk to people who have organised
a similar event - make sure that you take into account any local differences.
If you can not base your figures on past experience, the best idea is to calculate the
number of people you expect to attend, and then make an assessment of how you think
they will spend their money. For example, you might calculate that of the 200 you hope
will come the your Nearly New Sale, 100 will buy a raffle ticket at 50p. This will give
you an anticipated raffle income of £50.
Try to get together a small group of people to undertake this exercise. Several heads are
always better than one. You will probably find that some of you have invaluable
experience form other parts of your life on which to draw, e.g. fundraising for your
children’s school.
Always err on the side of caution. It is better to set a conservative target and beat it than
set an over ambitious target and fall short of it.
EXPENDITURE
What will the event cost? Consider all the possibilities. When calculating your likely
costs, it is worth sticking to a few key principles:
 Be generous when working out what you will have to spend – round up, not down
 Assume that you will have to pay for everything – securing gifts in kind will then be a
bonus rather than a necessity
 Always include a contingency to cover unforeseen costs
The items which you will need to budget for will vary depending on the kind of event
you are planning. Below is a list of the sort of items you may wish to incorporate. It is
not exhaustive but will act as a guide:
VENUE
Hire of venue
Cleaning costs
Chair hire
Table hire
Staff costs e.g. your own staff time,
door staff, technical staff, etc
Hire of equipment e.g. lighting, sound
equipment, special effects equipment,
etc.
DECORATIONS
Flowers and plants
Table Decorations
Bunting
Balloons
Banners
Displays
CATERING
Food Costs
Refreshments for volunteers
Catering Staff
Catering equipment hire
Complementary drinks
VIP Reception
FEES
Entertainers
Ice Cream Vans, etc
PRINTING
Invitations
Programmes
Tickets
Promotional items – fliers / posters
ADVERTISING
Press
TV / Radio
Internet
Telemarketing
PUBLICITY
Photography
Local press releases
Press reception
Pre event press launch
ADMINISTRATION
Postage
Stationary
Badges
Photocopying
Secretarial help
MISCELLANEOUS
Parking charges
Meals
Hotels
Transport
Volunteer expenses
EVENT BUDGET PRO FORMA
Name of Event:
Date of Event:
Organiser:
INCOME
Source of income
Total
Likely income £ / €
EXPENDITURE
Cost categories
Contingency
Total
Likely cost £ / €
NET INCOME
Deduct the total costs form the total income to arrive at the net income for the event.
Having worked out how much your event will cost and how much you hope it will
raise, you can now calculate how much you must raise to break even, e.g. how many
tickets you must sell.
Total income
Minus total costs
Equals net income